VOA慢速英语2019--俄勒冈州剩下最后一家

Oregon Will Have the Last Blockbuster on Earth

After a Blockbuster store in Australia closes on March 31, the American city of Bend, Oregon will have the only one left on Earth.

For years, Blockbuster was a big name in the video rental¹ business. The company had thousands of stores in the United States and around the world.

But Blockbuster began to lose money during the 2000s. The company went to court and declared bankruptcy² in 2010. By 2014, all company-owned stores had closed. Since then, locally owned Blockbusters have closed, one by one.

Operating the soon-to-be last Blockbuster Video on Earth is not easy.

The computer system uses old disks that only the store's general manager knows how to use. The video rentals³ are recorded on a kind of aging tape. The tape cannot be replaced because Radio Shack⁴, another once famous store, went out of business.

Sandi Harding has worked at the Blockbuster in Bend for over 15 years and is the store's general manager. She says "stubbornness," is part of the reason the store is still open. "We did everything we could to cut costs and keep ourselves relevant⁵," she said.

Zeke Kamm lives in Bend. He is making a documentary⁶ about the store with his friend. He notes that many people who rented videos over the years want to share memories of their experiences. "They remember who they went with and that freedom of walking the aisles," Kamm said.

Kamm explained how Blockbusters were once an important part of small town America. The Blockbuster was the only place that was open past nine at night, and a lot of them stayed open much later, he said. “So children who weren’t hoodlums would come here and look at movies and fall in love with movies.”

On a recent weekday, Michael Trovato of Melbourne, Australia stopped by the Blockbuster store in Bend while visiting his twin sister.

"I miss being able to walk into a Blockbuster or CD store and have that social experience… It's something you don’t get from the slick presentation of a music service or, you know, from the Internet," he said.

The Bend store does not seem to be in danger of closing.

Many people stop by to take pictures. The store sells clothing with the words "Last Blockbuster on the Planet⁸." It even gets gifts from people, including boxes of video tapes, DVDs, and Blockbuster souvenirs.

Recently, Harding has noticed that more children are coming to the store, brought in by their parents who like remembering the past.

Jerry Gilless and his wife, Elizabeth, on a trip to Oregon, recently brought their two children, ages 3 and 5, to the store in Bend. They watched with a smile as their children walked from row to row, looking at movies.

"How could we not stop? It's the last one," said Gilless. "They need to see that not everything's on the iPad."

I'm John Russell.

Words in This Story

rental – adj. of or related⁹ to payments¹⁰ made in exchange for borrowing something

bankruptcy – n. a condition of financial failure caused by not having the money that you need to pay your debts

manager – n. a person responsible for directing a a store or business

relevant – adj. relating to a subject in an appropriate way

aisle⁷ – n. a passage where people walk through a store, market, etc.

hoodlum – n. a tough and violent criminal

slick – adj. smooth

souvenir – n. a keepsake or remembrance piece

1 rental   

n.租赁，出租，出租业

参考例句：

• The yearly rental of her house is 2400 yuan.她这房子年租金是2400元。
• We can organise car rental from Chicago O'Hare Airport.我们可以安排提供从芝加哥奥黑尔机场出发的租车服务。

2 bankruptcy   

n.破产；无偿付能力

参考例句：

• You will have to pull in if you want to escape bankruptcy.如果你想避免破产，就必须节省开支。
• His firm is just on thin ice of bankruptcy.他的商号正面临破产的危险。

3 rentals   

n.租费，租金额( rental的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• In some large hotels, the income derived from this source actually exceeds income from room rentals. 有些大旅馆中，这方面的盈利实际上要超过出租客房的盈利。 来自辞典例句
• Clerk: Well, Canadian Gifts is on the lower level. It's across from Prime Time Video Rentals. 噢，礼品店在楼下，在黄金时刻录像出租屋的对面。 来自口语例句

4 shack   

adj.简陋的小屋，窝棚

参考例句：

• He had to sit down five times before he reached his shack.在走到他的茅棚以前，他不得不坐在地上歇了五次。
• The boys made a shack out of the old boards in the backyard.男孩们在后院用旧木板盖起一间小木屋。

5 relevant   

adj.有关的，贴切的

参考例句：

• I don't think his remarks are relevant to our discussion.我认为他的话不切我们的议题。
• These materials are relevant to the case.这些材料与这案件有关。

6 documentary   

adj.文献的；n.纪录片

参考例句：

• This case lacked documentary proof.本案缺少书面证据。
• I watched a documentary on the Civil War.我看了一部关于内战的纪录片。

7 aisle   

n.（教堂、教室、戏院等里的）过道，通道

参考例句：

• The aisle was crammed with people.过道上挤满了人。
• The girl ushered me along the aisle to my seat.引座小姐带领我沿着通道到我的座位上去。

8 planet   

n.行星

参考例句：

• Neptune is the furthest planet from the sun. 海王星是离太阳最远的行星。
• Rubbish, however, is only part of the problem of polluting our planet. 然而, 垃圾只是我们这个星球的污染问题的一个方面。

9 related   

adj.有关系的，有关联的，叙述的，讲述的

参考例句：

• I am not related to him in any way.我和他无任何关系。
• We spent days going through all related reference material.我们花了好多天功夫查阅所有有关的参考资料。

10 payments   

n.支付，付款，缴纳，报酬( payment的名词复数 )；付出的[要付出的]款项；报答，报偿

参考例句：

• Welfare payments cease as soon as an individual starts a job. 一旦就业，即停发福利救济。
• The law can compel fathers to make regular payments for their children. 这项法律可强制父亲定期支付子女的费用。